Hi all,
I have created a mailing list for the discussion of old electronic
calculators. To subscribe send a message to:
ecalc-request(a)lists.heydon.org
with the single word 'subscribe' in the body of the message.
Once you are subscribed you may send submissions to:
ecalc(a)lists.heydon.org
Regards
--
Kevan
Old Computer Collector: http://staff.motiv.co.uk/~kevan/
On Wed, 31 Dec 1969, Marvin wrote:
> I just plugged in the Epson PX-8 and the only thing that happens is the
> LCD screen turns on, but nothing else. I plugged in a power supply to
> charge the battery (and then checked the battery voltage) so that is not
> the problem. I also pressed both the outside reset switch with no
> response, and then pressed the "master" reset switch in the compartment
> on the bottom of the machine, again with no response. When the bottom
> was opened, there was space for two ROMs; the center one was empty and
> the one to the side had an Epson ROM of some sort installed. There was
Marvin, the socket labelled ROM1 should have an Epson ROM in it, and as
far as I know it is the O/S ROM. ROM2 socket on mine has Portable
WordStar and is not necessary to run the system as far as I know. In
fact, I just pulled the ROM on mine and the system still came up (BTW,
those ROMs are neat...they have a little plastic bucket that the ROM sits
in that makes it easy to pull them out and re-insert them). My battery
is worn and does not hold a charge anymore, but it will recharge and
operate for a little while (how long I don't know since I never have it
on for more than a few minutes) but as soon as I plug in the power supply
it works fine. Inside the ROM compartment you will notice an "Initial
Reset" button. Have you tried pressing that? There is also a dip switch
inside (SW4)...my settings are as follows:
1:ON
2:ON
3:ON
4:ON
5:OFF
6:ON
7:OFF
8:OFF
There is a smaller compartment on the bottom near that back of the
unit...did you make sure there is a ROM in there? Is it seated correctly?
Hope this helps in some small way.
Sam
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer Historian, Programmer, Musician, Philosopher, Athlete, Writer, Jackass
i believe it's a "dumb terminal" that uses NTSC video - probably emulates
either the H19 or VT100 (or both). i think the "save" button is used in
configuring (and saving) terminal options.
- glenn
At 04:00 PM 12/31/70 +0000, Marvin wrote:
>Among the things I picked up yesterday was a Zenith Data Systems
>keyboard, model ZTX-1-A. The top of the keyboard looks like a regular
>keyboard but the back has an RCA jack labeled "Video Output", a 40 pin
>header labeled "Printer", a pushbutton labeled "Save", a db9 male
>connector labeled "Power", two phone jacks labeled "Phone Connect" and
>"Wall Connect", and a switch near the phone jacks labeled
>"Multiline/Single Line". Anyone have any idea what this thing is?
>Thanks.
>
>
>
+=========================================================+
| Glenn F. Roberts, Falls Church, VA
| Comments are my own and not the opinion of my employer
| groberts(a)mitre.org
> On 21 Jul 97 at 10:15, Greg Mast wrote:
> > Apple III External Floppy Drive **PHOTO**
> I noticed the current bid for this was $103.50. I'd love to hear if
> you actually collect that much for it. I can't believe someone
> actually wants it THAT bad.
Me too. I figured $20-$30. But who am I to complain? But like they say,
talk is cheap. We'll see if they pull through. I had a Radio Shack hard
drive that was bid up to $150 a while back. Both high bidders flaked and
I relisted it and sold it for $30. Go figure.
On the other hand, I had a garage sale last weekend. Not one person
interested in the piles of Apple, Commodore, Atari stuff. I mean, if you
guys aren't going to garage sales to buy stuff, you're missing a lot of
deals. Most of the stuff at the Goodwill has an old garage sale sticker
on it.
> I.E Making a new ROM. Well, I do have the IBM PC manual that has the ROM
> unassembled in it... I thought those panels worked by playing with the
> lines on the CPU. Sounds like more work than I have time to do now. I do
> know that E11 lets you pull this off via the paralell port. It would be a
> neat trick, if I had time to work at it.
They do work by playing with the lines on the CPU. However, the 8088 (and
most microprocessors) do not allow you to get to the internal registers
>from the bus. It works on the PDP-11 because the registers have a bus
address; i.e., you can DMA into registers.
This stopped being possible on the microprocessor implementations of the
the PDP-11, which is where MicroODT fills in.
Roger ivie
ivie(a)cc.usu.edu
Quick question:
10base2 (cheapernet) thin coax eithernet: What is the minimum cable length?
Everything I have has the maximum and I remember there is a minimim.
Allison
Minimum is 1 meter, max is 185m 25ohm terminator at each in, 48 drops per
segment.
----------
> From: Allison J Parent <allisonp(a)world.std.com>
> To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
<classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu>
> Subject: 10base2
> Date: Monday, July 28, 1997 1:00 PM
>
> Quick question:
>
> 10base2 (cheapernet) thin coax eithernet: What is the minimum cable
length?
> Everything I have has the maximum and I remember there is a minimim.
>
> Allison
<but then again, I do have a PC-XT motherboard to waste... It would be
<interesting... Is it possible? It would score high on the nerdity
<scale...
The 8088 would be difficult to make a hardware style front pannel like the
PDP-8e or 11/70s had but a software front pannel is doable with a spare
parallel port or homebrew IO card. It would have to ahve some software to
dump registers to lights based on switchs, load registers from switches
(at least 16 of them for data/addresses) also other things like single
stepping and single instruction would have to be handled. The other
possibility is an embedded ODT like the 11/03, 11/23 or later q-bus PDP-11s
have. IT allows memory display, changing locations, halting, running from
an address and display/load registers from a terminal(console).
Allison
On Sun, 27 Jul 1997 14:13:00 -0500 (CDT), Brett <danjo(a)xnet.com> wrote:
>>Unless someone can verify the legal status of the copyrights on the ROMs.
>>I am a little busy setting up Rescue trips to dig much further into THAT
>>moras of mumbo-jumbo.
I got my copies of the ROM images off of ftp.funet.fi. It seems that this
Finland ftp site has boat loads of Commodore software, including the ROM
images to be used for emulators (I used mine for the PC-VIC emulator and as a
known-good ROM image to compare my Kernel assemblies with).
If my wife really understood what I was doing with the VIC Kernel project,
she'd probably say "Why??" too. But, it's really more of saying to myself that
I reverse-engineered object-code into a recompilable file and that I learned
something than anything else. Since I can't yet really own the source code, I
made my own <g>.
-------------------------------------------------
Rich Cini/WUGNET
e-mail: rcini(a)msn.com
- ClubWin Charter Member (6)
- MCPS Windows 95/Netowrking
Message text written by INTERNET:classiccmp@u.washington.edu
>>The 8-pin cable for the Plus/4 is exactly the same as the 8-pin cable for
the (more common) Commodore 64 or 128. <<
>> Finally, if you want to hack one together, I can provide the pinout.<<
>I'd like the Pinout!!<
First, the Commodore 8-pin DIN connector is the unusual one; the "Hershman"
or something. This means that pins 7 and 8 are not in the same positions
as on the common 8-pin DIN connector. (Look at the port to confirm pin
placement; I'm not sure the chart below is correct.) One easy solution
here is to cut pins 7 and 8 off a common 8-pin connector; they aren't
needed for anything. Or as explained below, you can use a common 5-pin DIN
connector; but, if you're hooking to a separated color composite monitor,
your picture won't be QUITE as sharp.
Looking at the port on the back of the computer, OR at the BACK of the DIN
plug (the side you'll attach the wires to), the pinout is:
8 7
3 6 1
5 4
2
Connections are:
1 Luminance
2 GRND
3 Audio
4 Color Composite
5 Audio In (not used)
6 Chroma
7 NC
8 NC
Hook up pin 3 for audio in all cases. As to video, if you're using a
separated color composite monitor, do separate RCA plugs for 1 and 6. If
you're using a color composite monitor with the single input, use 4. If
you have monochrome, use 1. If you want to use a 5-pin DIN connector with
a separated color composite monitor, do separate RCA plugs for pins 1 and
4.
Message text written by INTERNET:classiccmp@u.washington.edu
>> >Does anyone have a Commodore Plus/4 video cable for sale or trade?<<<
>> (the early models had a 5-pin port) will also work on a Plus/4. In
fact, I think most home computer manufacturers (Atari, TI) used 5-pin
cables with
the composite, sound and ground on the same pins, so you could try one of<<
>I have a TI/994a converter box...will this work?<
The TI 99/4a doesn't have an internal RF modulator; that's what the box
does. So even on a TI, you only need the box (and can only use the box) if
you're hooking to a TV. The Plus/4 has an internal RF modulator, so if you
want to hook to a TV all you need is an RCA-RCA cable and an ordinary
game/TV switch. I *assumed* (and we all know what happens when we "ass u
me") that when you said "video cable", you meant a monitor cable. As I
said, it's the same as the C64 and some other computers use, so it
shouldn't be all that rare. I'm sure anybody could sell you one (including
me) for $5 and postage.
Gil Parrish
107765.1161(a)compuserve.com
On Fri, 25 Jul 1997 15:51:33 -0400, Gil Parrish wrote:
> For the last two years, I have been working on making a
recompilable version of the VIC-20 Kernel ROM.<
>>OK, I'm not afraid to ask the amateur question: Why?
>>I'd love to see someone with good programming skills write some
>>sophisticated software for the VIC-20, likely requiring at least a 16K
>>expander or something. If your project will help lead to that, I'm all
>>for it.
Well, Gil, I used it as a learning project. When I first got my VIC-20 in
1981/2, I was in junior high school. I programmed mostly in BASIC, and did a
little ML. After I graduated, I got involved in too many other things: my
fraternity, my wife, a job, the Mac, and then Windows hacking. When I bought
my house two years ago, I moved all of my old machines and started playing
with them again.
So...I wanted to re-learn 6502 ML and the VIC/CBM architecture. I thought
that documenting the VIC Kernel (some thing that I had never seen in print)
would be a nice project. Also, I thought that it sould be good to have
recompilable Kernel code, if I ever needed to recompile it. Documenting the
Kernel enables the programmer to understand what's in the "black box." This is
why AndrewShulman and Matt Pietrek have made a fortune in books detailing the
internals of Windows.
------------------------
Rich Cini/WUGNET
rcini(a)msn.com
- ClubWin Charter Member (6)
- MCPS Windows 95/Networking
I found I sent this email to Sam instead of mailing to the listserver so
I am just reposting in case anyone is interested.
> Now you did it, I had to go back and look at all the stuff again, darn
>
> :). Everything below has the Aquarius name and logo on it. The
> 4-color
> printer turned out to be Radofin Electronics. This is actually what
> came in the lot: Prices are from the Crimac, Inc. Aquarius Order form
>
> before the discount. The only date is on the order form and states
> that
> 10% can be deducted if mailed by January 31, 1985. The prices are
> from
> that flyer as obtained from a copy of the original order. The next
> flyer from Crimac showed a price increase of about 20%. Pricing is
> qualified when the model number on the box did not match the order.
>
> Mattel Electronics Aquarius
> Ser # RH0115319
> Model # 5931
> Missing original box and packaging, but has docs
> No Price listed
>
> Mattel Electronics Data Recorder Ser # RH000151
> Added label - Mattel Electronics, Mfg by Radofin
> Model # 4394
> Price - $31.95 for Model # 4394R
>
> Mattel Electronics Mini Expander Ser # RH0109348
> Model # 4063
> Price - $43.95 for Model # 4063R
>
> Radofin Electronics 4-Color Printer Ser # RH0500203
> No indication of mfg on printer, only Radofin on box
> Missing printer cable
> Model # 4615R
> Price - $109.00
>
> Mattel Electronics Space Speller Cartridge
> Only Mattel label on box is "(c) Mattel Electronics, Inc. 1983"
> Model # GMN0014
> Price - $19.95 for Model 4682R
>
> Mattel Electonics FileForm Cartridge
> Model # 4177
> Price - $29.95 for Model 4177R
>
> Radofin Electronics 32K Memory Module
> Model # 4217R
> Price - $74.95
>A while ago I promised two people that I would fetch them some IBM PCjr
>power supplies if I ever found them. Well, I found some today. I've got
Incidentally, I built a PSU for my PC-jr last week.
I used a simple 15V AC transformer, no centre tap or anything like that. The
only one I could find was 50VA, which is marginal, but not too bad.
The ends of the secondary go to the outside 2 pins of the PC-jr power
connector. The central pin goes to mains earth and to nothing on the secondary
side at all.
Oh, I put a 3.15A fuse in series with the secondary to protect the transformer.
It works fine. My PC-jr boots, and all PSU outputs (including the -ve one) are
present and correct.
>
>Sam
-tony
You pay UPS for 7 lbs from 93405. Printer only, no interface cable. Was
used with C-64. Untested but looks good.
Check the <a href=http://www.ups.com/using/services/rave/rate.html> UPS
Rate Calculator </a> to figure shipping. And be sure to add about $1
because those quotes are commercial pick-up rates.
Was there some bloke on this discussion who was asking for the Hayes
micro-coupler the other day? I have an extra one if you still need it.
E-mail me.
Sam
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer Historian, Programmer, Musician, Philosopher, Athlete, Writer, Jackass
I have the following Commodore stuff for sale. Discount for more than
one item (you save on shipping too)
VIC-1541 Drive (2 ea) $5 ea
1541 Drive (2 ea) $5 ea
C-64 in orig box w/ps(1 ea) $5
Commodore joysticks (1 pr) $5
Untested C-64 Power Supplies (6 ea) $3 ea
Remember to add shipping to what its worth to you. Use the UPS site:
<a href=http://www.ups.com/using/services/rave/rate.html> UPS Rate
Calculator </a> to figure shipping. And be sure to add $1 because those
quotes are commercial pick-up rates. Drives and C-64s are about 11 lbs
ea. My ZIP is 93405.
I also have a pile of cables and stuff that I haven't look through yet.
Will throw in whatever cables and manuals I can find that go with each
item, no guarantees though. Also, Im pretty sure I ran all these but not
positive. I don't have time to test all this stuff. Sold AS-IS.
Make me an offer on all or some of it! It's going to go one way or
another so if it doesn't sell, I'll give it away for shipping cost. If
that doesn't work it shall return to the thrift store from whence it
came!
A while ago I promised two people that I would fetch them some IBM PCjr
power supplies if I ever found them. Well, I found some today. I've got
two up for grabs. Please e-mail me if you were one of the two people who
inquired about one. If you weren't, e-mail me anyway and I will send
them to you if the other two guys don't respond. To the two guys whose
names I forgot: sorry for forgetting your names!
Sam
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer Historian, Programmer, Musician, Philosopher, Athlete, Writer, Jackass
A-B C-D
< ---+----------+---------+
< 1 | M7606 =============|
< 2 | M7608 =============|
< 3 | M3106 === |
< 4 | M7516YM== |
< ---+----------+---------+
< 5 | M7546====|M7555====|
< 6 |
< 7 |
< 8 |
< 9 |
< 10 |
< 11 |
< 12 |
< ---+----------+---------+
< 13 | | HDCNCTRS
<
Slot 13 bottom is not the HD controller, it's the distribution card. There
should be a 50pin cable bettween the m9058 and the m7555(rqdx3) card.
Pull the m3106 and bump the rest up one with the last one being the m7555.
It shouldn't make a difference but at this point you don't need it to boot.
This will give you a minimal config for the bus. Also make sure the overt
the top cable for the memory is good!
A-B C-D
---+----------+---------+
1 | M7606 =============|
2 | M7608 =============|
3 | M7546 === |
4 | M7555 === |
---+----------+---------+
5 |===Q->====|==Q->====|
6 |====<-Q===|===<-Q===|
7 |===Q->====|===Q->===|
The arrows are added to indicate the qbus grant flow for the bus starting
at row 5.
Allison
Here's an Apple /// for sale. I've seen them go for much cheaper.
Sam
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer Historian, Programmer, Musician, Philosopher, Athlete, Writer, Jackass
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: sundeck(a)ix.netcom.com(N.J.C.)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2.marketplace
Subject: Apple /// FS
Date: 24 Jul 1997 12:31:32 GMT
one Apple /// with Apple /// monitor and
2 nd drive , some software
$150 plus shipping
sundeck(a)ix.netcom.com or
eflea(a)atlantic.net
--
Sam
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer Historian, Programmer, Musician, Philosopher, Athlete, Writer, Jackass
>Or otherwise stated: What to do when the cost of reviving a rescued
>computer is as much as buying one of the same model?
>
>To explain, I recently rescued a Mac+ (2.5/40) which was being thrown
>out by my employer. When I got it, it would give intermittant Sad Mac
>errors. No problem, I figure I can replace the RAM with some surplus
>PC SIMMs. This fixes the Sad Macs, but after it heats up it dies with
>an "Address Error" bomb. Some board switching points to the motherboard
>(more specifically, the ROMs) as being the fault.
Hmmm... My first thought is to fix the old board :
Since the ROMs work OK when cold, you should be able to make a good copy of
them onto disk. Then blow them into EPROMs, and modify the Mac+ to use said
EPROMs (I believe a very small mod is needed, alas, but I don't know that much
about the Mac+ hardware).
IMHO that's not piracy - it's simply using a backup copy on new media since the
original media failed.
However, a pair of EPROMs would probably cost about $15, so that's no solution
either.
In the past I _have_ spent more on repairing/restoring a machine than buying a
new one would cost. The reason is simple - I enjoy doing said repairs. A hobby
doesn't have to make financial sense.
[...]
>Thanks in advance... <<<John>>>
>
>P.S. Anybody also know of a source for a LaserWriter Plus logic board, too?
What's wrong with the old one. From the pictures I've seen of said board
(Sorry, I don't have one, only a CX-VDO (same engine, but with no logic board)
and a Laserwriter 2NT), it looks to be mostly standard components, and should
be repairable.
-tony
Hey Marvin:
I was wondering if any of your recent Atari acquisitions are for sale. I
am especially interested on a good deal on a drive and some software...
PLEASE let me know..
CORD
//*=====================================================================++
|| Cord G. Coslor P.O. Box 308 - 1300 3rd St. Apt "M1" -- Peru, NE ||
|| (402) 872- 3272 coslor(a)bobcat.peru.edu 68421-0308 ||
|| Classic computer software and hardware collector ||
|| Autograph collector ||
++=====================================================================*//
On Wed, 31 Dec 1969, Marvin wrote:
> I went to the TRW Swap Meet today down in Los Angeles and managed to get
> a few things. A guy was selling a fairly complete Aquarius that
> included the cassette recorder, printer/plotter, expansion chassis, a
> 32K expansion unit, some games, and documentation. He was asking $25
> but took $20 for the lot. Also picked up an Epson PX-8 portable and an
> NEC 8201 portable (sure hope those numbers are correct as I am going
> from memory) for $25 lot. The "best" deal was a guy walking around with
> a sign that said "Free Atari". Of course, that got my attention and I
> picked the 5 boxes of stuff up. Haven't checked it all out yet, but
> there were supposed to be three Atari 400 computers, Three disk drive
> units, an 850 interface, a modem, docs, and some other stuff. Saw a guy
> offering S-100 cards (mostly memory and HD cards) at $5 each. When I
> asked why he was asking so much, he replied they weren't for sale. I
> hadn't heard of the manufacturer of those particular cards, and figured
> if schematics were available, they might be worth what he was asking.
>
> I met a friend of mine whom I hadn't seen for about a year. Turns out
> he built one of the Altair computers I have and was one of the first
> factory reps for Vector Graphic. Apparently among the many people he
> called on was a place up around Berkeley with a name like Kentucky Fried
> Computers (or something similar) and that was where Northstar Computers
> got started. Apparently, he has some of the early SCCS stuff along with
> most of the Vector Graphic docs, etc. so with any luck, I'll end up with
> that stuff too.
>
>
Message text written by INTERNET:classiccmp@u.washington.edu
>Does anyone have a Commodore Plus/4 video cable for sale or trade?<
The 8-pin cable for the Plus/4 is exactly the same as the 8-pin cable for
the (more common) Commodore 64 or 128. And, a 5-pin cable made for the 64
(the early models had a 5-pin port) will also work on a Plus/4. In fact, I
think most home computer manufacturers (Atari, TI) used 5-pin cables with
the composite, sound and ground on the same pins, so you could try one of
those if you have one sitting around. Finally, if you want to hack one
together, I can provide the pinout.
Gil Parrish
107765.1161(a)compuserve.com